Even today, 26 years after experiencing what it feels like to be 'that' person, it's can be hard for me to figure out what to say when someone else gets diagnosed with cancer. I know that when I was going through it, there were so many - too many - people around me who let me down. It was only once I recovered from the throes of illness - getting through the shock of the diagnosis, the … [Read more...] about Knowing What to Say to a Friend With Cancer
Cancer
Why I Chose to Have a Prophylactic Mastectomy
Angelina Jolie was not the only one to choose a prophylactic mastectomy. I did, too. - but for different reasons. (Thank you, Angelina, for making it public. You've given me the courage to write about it for the very first time. And now, I can't imagine why I was silent for so long). When I was diagnosed with breast cancer almost 25 years ago, the words "prophylactic mastectomy" were not … [Read more...] about Why I Chose to Have a Prophylactic Mastectomy
The Newtown School Shootings: A Most Unfortunate Way to Reconcile a Death
As I sit here this Monday morning, it's so hard to make sense out of my emotions, which are flip-flopping through my crowded mind, competing for attention. I am grieving the death of my father, who passed away on Friday. But on top of that, I'm also grieving – along with the rest of the world – the 20 young children who died that same day in Newtown, just 30 minutes from my home here in … [Read more...] about The Newtown School Shootings: A Most Unfortunate Way to Reconcile a Death